Brandon Nimmo activated from the 60-day injured list

Among the players joining the Mets as rosters expand is Brandon Nimmo. At long last, he will be activated from the 60-day injured list ahead of tonight’s game. It’s been a long and tough road back for Nimmo, who has been on the injured list since May 21 with a bulging disc in his neck.

Nimmo had what seemed like an insipid collision with the outfield wall in an April 14 game in Atlanta. He missed two games and then returned, but struggled mightily, posting a .171/.312/.224 in 26 games over that period. It turns out, his neck pain kept resurfacing and he was initially placed on the injured list with “neck stiffness,” which was later diagnosed as a bulging disc pushing on his nerve, causing the pain.

When asked about his usage moving forward, Mickey Callaway said, “We are going to know that Nimmo has had almost the full season off. We have to take that into account and have to understand who has been up here has been getting the job done since the All-Star break and doing well. There will be times when he starts and times when he is coming off the bench, and I think we need to keep it fluid and see how everybody is clicking and how everybody is doing.”

The Mets are certainly missing Nimmo’s production. In aggregate, the Mets have put up a 91 wRC+ from the center field position this season, which includes a fair number of games with Michael Conforto manning the position. In 2018, Nimmo had his best season as a Met, posting a 149 wRC+ over 535 plate appearances.

Jed Lowrie, who has also been rehabbing in the minor leagues, will not be returning just yet. Meanwhile, Robinson Cano, who played for Brooklyn yesterday, is eyeing a Tuesday return in Washington, which would be well ahead of schedule.